5 min read · Updated September 26, 2026
How per-mile pay actually works, using a real pay matrix
Base rate, bands, bonuses and what a typical week means. Walked through with one carrier's published compensation summary.
Per-mile pay looks simple: cents per mile times miles. The details decide whether a week is $2,000 or $2,700. Here is how to read a per-mile offer, using Green Line Logistics' Driver Compensation Summary v4.0 (effective August 24, 2026) as the example, because it is the one on our job pages.
The base rate is the carrier's stated rate
The base is what you earn per mile before anything else. It is the carrier's stated per-mile rate from its offer document. On the Green Line matrix, P&D solo drivers earn $0.80 on Short-band runs and $0.78 on Mid and Long; line haul solo earns $0.70 Short and Mid, $0.65 Long. Everything above it is a bonus that has to be earned each period. Weekly figures are examples, and the carrier's written offer controls.
Which miles count
Ask two questions. First: are empty miles paid? On this matrix, yes: every mile, loaded and empty, at the band rate. Second: how are miles calculated? Here it is zip to zip along the most practical cargo-legal route in the carrier's system. Practical-route miles are usually a little lower than the odometer. Know which one your offer uses.
Bands: the length of the run sets the rate
Some carriers pay one rate. Others, like this one, set the rate per run by its total miles: Short 201 to 450, Mid 451 to 950, Long 951 and over. Empty miles count toward the band too, so 200 empty to a pickup plus 100 loaded is a 300-mile Short-band run at the Short rate.
Bonuses stack, but each has a test
- Fuel: +2 cents per mile when your rolling 4-week average MPG meets the band's threshold.
- Safety: +2 cents per mile when your 4-week telematics safety score meets the threshold. Only a preventable accident confirmed by review takes it away.
- Loyalty: +1, +2, +3 cents per mile at 1, 2 and 3 years.
Together that is up to +7 cents on top of base. They are paid on a rolling four-week window, in the fifth week. If an offer quotes the "up to" rate, ask what the base is and what the tests are.
What "typical week" means
A weekly figure on an offer is the base rate times a mileage the carrier considers typical for the band: for example 3,000 miles a week on Mid-band P&D solo runs at $0.78 is $2,340 before bonuses. It is not a guarantee. Your miles depend on your lane, freight and hours of service. Treat the number as "if I run this many miles, this is what the base pays," and ask the recruiter what drivers on your specific lane are actually running.
Questions to ask on the call
- What is the base and which miles does it apply to?
- How are miles calculated?
- Is there a band system, and what band does my lane usually run?
- What are the bonus tests, and how many drivers actually hit them?
- What accrues on top: detention, layover, extra stops, loading?
- Am I 1099 or W2, and is there an escrow or deposit?
Ready to look?
Every job here shows pay from the carrier's own document and says what it does not state.